I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY! ‏

 Yes, there really are little frogs everywhere everyday.

 The baptism!

 Pics with my pensionista, Hna Daysi

Pday with Hna Hill. So great.

This was one of the most wonderful weeks of my mission and also one of the most difficult. I learned so much and now have a greater understanding of my purpose as a missionary! 

Monday night we went to visit the familia Ala and they told us that the mom had to leave Wednesday or Thursday to go to her pueblo to bring her weavings (it is incredible to watch her weave!) to the people that are buying them and that they didn't want to get baptized right now. I was crushed because I was so excited for their baptisms and we had worked so hard with them. I am now realizing that this was for the best though, because now they have more time to prepare (it's hard for them to understand even if we are teaching VERY simply) and really have a testimony (they have a new date for the 15th of March). I know that this is the Lord's work and He is in charge of everything. All that matters is that I try my hardest and put forth all my effort and the rest is up to Him.

One of the best moments of my mission was the baptism of Jose Terrazas! I felt so much joy this Saturday as I got to see him enter the waters of baptism! I don't think I have been happier. Jose AND HIS WIFE AND SON showed up for the baptism. It was so beautiful! All went well and he had a member baptize him that lives down the street from him and also has a wife, daughter and baby (a family very similar to Jose's family). It really was so amazing to see how the Atonement has changed his life. How the Gospel of Jesus Christ could bring him the peace and happiness that he needed and how it will continue to bless his life and the life of his family. I am excited to start teaching his wife and I have the faith that one day they will be an eternal family!

Last night was the night of transfers and we didn't even get our transfer until after 10:30! I was so nervous for some reason, but all is well and Hna Pérez and I are together for this transfer! I am also grateful for this! We get along super well, but still have a lot of work to do in becoming more united in our teaching and I am excited to work hard on that this transfer. I have learned so much from Hermana Pérez. She has a genuine love for those around her and always has a smile on her face. I am also so grateful to still be in this area! It is so amazing and we have a lot of work to do here this transfer!

I am still in awe about how amazing it is to be a missionary and be a part of this work. I feel so blessed and am so grateful for the things I have learned and the people I have met. I really feeling the joy that it talks about in Alma 26! This work is one of a kind!

I love you all so much and hope you have a great week!

Hermana Gardiner

Oh, it's Monday again?!

 Christ Statue

 A turtle

My exchange with Hna Bolanos

here is a picutre of us with turtles that i took special for my grandma turtle!

Hey fam!

It sounds like all is well from mom and dad's emails! I love you all so much and know that I am praying for you! Thanks for all your love and support.

We had a zone meeting this week and President has but the theme of being angels. That really as missionaries, we are angles for the people we are teaching and the members we are serving! This has really helped me realize what my purpose is and what I need to be focused to do every day. We've been reading scriptures that talk about when angles have visited people and our goal is to apply this in our teaching and our purpose. It really is beautiful and it's helped me learn so much! We all have the opportunity in one way or another, to be angles for those around us that need help!

All is well here in Colcapirhua. I feel so so blessed! We have six baptisms planned for this Saturday. I am praying and trying to strengthen my faith that all will be well and work out! One is named José Terrasas. He was so excited for his baptism he took the invitations for his baptism to his family and friends, unfortunately none of them want to support him--especially his in-laws so his wife is no longer supporting him. He is sad, but determined to get baptized and has a lot of faith that they will one day realized the difference in him and have the desire to learn more about the gospel. He is such a great example for me and I know the Lord has many great things planned for him. We also have a family and five of them should get baptized this Saturday as well. They are so great and their little (8 11 15) daughters are so excited to get baptized! It is beautiful to see how excited they are!

This week I had an intercambio with Hermana Bolaños. It was fun to be with her again and to have the opportunity to be reminded of how she teaches. She is such a great example for me and I am so grateful for all I have learned from her and her friendship! We will definitely be friends forever! It was so funny... She almost died in my area haha. She isn't a big fan of mud or animals (especially frogs-there are always tons of tiny frogs guming around. I think they're cute hahaha).

This is the last week of the transfer! I can't believe how quickly this transfer has passed! I really hope that Hermana Pérez and I will be together one more transfer. I feel like we still have so much to learn from each other and we still need to get better at teaching together. We get along super well and always have fun even if we have a hard day. I feel so lucky that she is my companion!

Oh! Last pday we went to the Christ statue. That was fun and now I can check that off my list! I still have moments where it feels unreal that I am here in Bolivia. This country is so beautiful and I love it so much!

Have a great week!

Hermana Gardiner

HIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!

planning with my headlamp and candle light

José terrasaz at the right and Bishop Días at the left

Us with Justina her daughters and some neighbor kids

Hello my dear family!

Another week has come and gone. It is crazy how fast time is flying. It's unreal. I really feel like I was just writing you yesterday. Things are great here in Colcaphirhua.

This week we had a couple incredible lessons. One was with the bishop and Jose Terrasaz. José is set to be baptized the 22nd. We taught him about the Book of Mormon and keeping the Sabbath day holy. It really is incredible to have members in the lessons with us because the bishop was able to share personal experiences that were really powerful. José told us that he wasn't sure if he was going to be able to come to church yesterday but he ended up making it for the sacrament. It was great. And really is so so excited for his baptism! We also taught a Hermana for the first time, her name is Marina (our third investigator named Marina haha) and has a son that is a missionary in Santa Cruz. She had so many awesome questions for us and it was so cool to feel the Holy Ghost work through us as we were able to teach her and resolve her doubts. She has a great potential to progress! We are also teaching a kid that is 12, Jorge. His mom (we also teaching her as well but she's not super interested for herself) wants him to have good friends and make good decisions so she sent him to church alone. Hahah there was another 12 year old that is an investigator of the elders and it was his first time at church as well and they became friends and are so excited to come to church next week and Jorge wants to bring his siblings as well. We are also teaching a lady names Justina. She has the cutest daughters and she really wants to have a change and raise her daughters well. The familia Alá couldn't make it to church yesterday so that was a bummer, but all is well with them and they are still set on getting baptized the 22nd!

Right now I am really working on having more faith. As mom knows, we are realists haha and sometimes I find myself lacking faith that baptisms are going to happen or things like that. But I know that there is so much power in faith and that the Lord really can work miracles! Faith is either growing or receding and it is so so important, especially in this work, that my faith is constantly growing!

Wellp it was a great week and the Lord has blessed us so much! I love you all and hope all is well! Happy Valentine’s day to all!

Oh yeah, something funny. The zone leaders hadn't payed our light bill for three weeks so we didn’t have light or power for a night. We planned by candle light and enjoyed freezing cold showers in the morning. It was great.

Hermana Gardiner

Happy February everyone! ‏

 Templo con Hna Pérez

 Teaching with Jenny (she is the same age as Kate... so wierd cause she seems so old!)

The familia Ala

I am constantly in awe with the miracles we can see every day! This week we went to visit an investigator for an appointment and she wasn't there for the second time in a row and I was a little frustrated. I quickly said a prayer in my head and asked that we could find someone to teach. One block later we passed a teenage girl waiting for a taxi and I felt like we needed to talk to her... but we had already passed her and I felt it would be a little awkward to turn around but that didn't matter. We went back and started talking to her. As we presented the Plan of Salvation she told us that this was exactly what she needed to hear. We ended up having an appointment with her and her mom two days later and they both accepted dates for their baptisms! This was just one of the many miracles this week!  Five members of the Ala Family are progressing super well (Corcino, Juanna, Hilda, Idanel, and Ebith)! They are praying and all say they know that this church is true! They are also reading the Book of Mormon and the pamphlets. They have come to church for the past three weeks (the first time without even being taught, before we were introduced to them!). They are super excited for their baptisms the 22nd of February! It is incredible to teach them and see how the Lord has prepared them for this message! I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to bring this knowledge to them! It is definitely a humbling experience to be a missionary! I love this work so much. We also had a blessing with Marina. She is the one that wants to be baptized but is not married and told us that her husband doesn't want to hear us... but Sunday afternoon we went to teach her and her husband was there and he listened to us, and is excited for us to come back so he can ask us all the questions he has! We have great hope that he can learn of the truth and they can get married and baptized!

Things are great with Hermana Pérez. She is learning how to teach more and more according to the needs of the people and really teaches with the spirit. It is so cool to be a part of helping her learn how to be a missionary. She is great! We are always laughing and having fun as we are working hard. I feel so blessed to have her as my companion.

Wellp. I saw a child running with a machete this week. That was interesting. The schools must have forgotten to teach the kids that they shouldn’t run with machetes haha.

I am so happy and things are so good! I am so grateful for all of you and all of your support! Know that I love you so much! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! Have a great week everyone:)

Love,

Hermana Gardiner